Barrette



May 10, 1938. D. D. SCHNEEWEIS 2,116,799

BARRETTE Filed Oct. 22, 1936 lNVENTOR bamz eZ gin-Sch neeweis A ATTORNEY 25 a back H,

55 and having side walls I ,0 i3 and rest adjacent 5 of the Patented May 10, 1938 NITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 3 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in barrettes, being particularly directed to latching means for attaching the same to the hair.

Broadly, it is an object of this invention to pro- 5 videla novel tongue and clamp formation incorporating a U-shaped resilient tongue, pivoted at one end of the barrette, the sides of which are latched under compression by the walls of spaced lugs at the other end of the barrette.

These and other advantages, capabilities and features of the invention will appear from the subjoined detailed description of one specific embodiment thereof illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is a front elevation of a barrette embodying the invention.

Figure 2 is a bottom plan view of the barrette.

Figure 3 is an end elevation in section taken along lines 33 of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is an end elevation in section of a modified form of the construction shown in Figure 3.

Referring to the reference characters in the drawing, numeral 1 represents a barrette having formed of plastic material, on the underface it of which there is disposed at one end, a lug i3, having a horizontally disposed aperture I4, and at the other end of which are disposed spaced pillars l5, having cylindrical 30 shanks it and conical apexes l1, both lug and pillar formations being the back H.

A U-shaped tongue l8, formed of resilient ma terial such as spring wire, looped as indicated, 9 and free ends 20 and 2|, is mounted on the bottom l2 of the barrette, the tongue being bowed outwardly adjacent the free ends as at 22, and the free ends being of such length as to extend through aperture 14 of lug one another to form a pivotal mounting for the tongue. The closed end 23 of the tongue i8 is upwardly inclined, as indicated in Figure l, and extends to a position adjacent the end of back i i, so as to permit gripping tongue for pivotal displacement about a molded integrally with lug iii.

The space between the pillars I5 is less than the distance between sides I9 of the tongue, so that, as indicated in Figure 3, and as illustrated in Figure 1, when tongue I8 is moved from dotted to full line position in Figure 1 to clamp hair to the barrette, sides l9 of the tongue are guided along surfaces 24 of the apex of the pillars and i then compressed, as the tongue is urged downwardly in the restricted space defined by the opposing inner walls 25 of the shanks of the pillars l5, thereby providing for a frictional latching action between tongue and pillars.

As indicated in Figure 4, the inner walls of the shanks of the pillars [5 may be grooved as at 26 to provide, in conjunction with the frictional latching action as a result of compression and contact of sides IQ of the tongue with the inner walls of the shanks of the pillars, for an additional latching medium.

It is pointed out that the tongue is of sufiicient resilient formation, and is so disposed with respectto pillars l5, that the latching and unlatching elfect may be carried out by vertical displacement of the tongue with respect to the pillar, and without any other directional movement or twisting of any parts of the device.

It is obvious that various changes and modifications may be made to the details of construction without departing from the general spirit of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An article of the class described, comprising a back member formed of plastic material, a lug at one end of said back, a tongue pivotally mounted on said lug, a plurality of spaced latch elements mounted at the other end of said back member, said tongue comprising a substantially U-shaped resilient wire element, the sides of which are adapted to contact with and be com pressed by said latch elements for latching engagement when the tongue is pressed downwardly thereagainst.

2. A barrette comprising a back member formed of plastic material, a plurality of spaced latch lugs at one end thereof, a latching member mounted for pivotal movement at the other end thereof, said tongue comprising a resilient U- shaped wire, the sides of said tongue being adapted, upon downward displacement of said tongue about its pivot, to be contact-ed by the walls of said latch lugs and inwardly compressed, thereby to provide a latching engagement between said tongue and latch lugs.

3. A barrette comprising a back member formed of plastic material, a plurality of spaced latch lugs at one end thereof, a latching mem ber mounted for pivotal movement at the other end thereof, said tongue comprising a resilient U- shaped wire, the sides of said tongue being adapted, upon downward displacement of said tongue about its pivot, to be contacted by the walls of said latch lugs and inwardly compressed, thereby to provide a latching engagement between said tongue and latch lugs, the heads of said latch lugs being of smaller diameter than the shanks thereof, thereby to guide the sides of the tongue towards and into latching engagement with the shanks of said latch lugs.

DANIEL D. SCHNEEWEIS. 

